Method of manufacturing press polymer-bonded explosive using polymer emulsion and press polymer-bonded explosive manufactured using the same

ABSTRACT

A method of manufacturing a press polymer-bonded explosive, in which a polymer emulsion is used to maximize the efficiency of a process, and a press polymer-bonded explosive manufactured using the same. The method includes a polymer-emulsion-manufacturing step of mixing a monomer of a polymer binder and an emulsifier with a process water and then adding an initiator to thus manufacture a polymer emulsion using a polymerization reaction, a slurry-manufacturing step of mixing a raw material including an explosive and an emulsion breaker with fresh process water to thus manufacture a slurry, an agglomerated-particle-forming step of adding the manufactured polymer emulsion to the manufactured slurry to thus form agglomerated particles in which a surface of the raw material is coated with the polymer binder, and an agglomerated-particle-obtaining step of collecting the agglomerated particles using filtration and drying the collected agglomerated particles.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims the benefit of Korean Patent Application No.10-2017-0048444, filed Apr. 14, 2017, which is hereby incorporated byreference in its entirety into this application.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Technical Field

The present invention relates to a press polymer-bonded explosive and,more particularly, to a method of manufacturing a press polymer-bondedexplosive, in which a polymer emulsion is used to maximize theefficiency of a process, and a press polymer-bonded explosivemanufactured using the same.

2. Description of Related Art

Explosions of explosives cause extensive loss of life and tremendousproperty damage once they occur because there is no time to evacuate.For this reason, there has been a need for an insensitive explosive,which is an explosive not causing an explosion reaction in response tounexpected external stimuli such as heat and shocks, and the demandthereof has also increased. Therefore, studies have been made on themanufacture of a polymer-bonded explosive in which a raw materialexplosive is desensitized or in which explosive particles are coatedwith a polymer binder to reduce sensitivity.

Of the various types of polymer-bonded explosives, a presspolymer-bonded explosive (hereinafter, also referred to as pressablepolymer-bonded explosive or Press-PBXs or P-PBXs) is a granular powderpolymer-bonded explosive manufactured by adding a solvent, containing apolymer binder dissolved therein, to a suspension in which explosiveparticles are dispersed in water, thus agglomerating the explosiveparticles and the polymer binder. The press polymer-bonded explosive iscompression molded to be used as a main charge or a booster charge for aweapon system. Moreover, the press polymer-bonded explosive is mainlyapplied to ammunition and warheads which require the fragmentationperformance and the jet performance of a shaped charge, because thecontent ratio of the explosive particles is the highest.

Generally, such a press polymer-bonded explosive is manufactured byapplying a water-slurry (hereinafter, also referred to as WS) process.The WS process includes adding a coating solution, in which aplasticizer and a polymer binder are dissolved in an organic solvent, toa suspension, in which raw materials containing explosive particles aredispersed and agitated in water at a temperature of about 60° C., tothus perform coating and agglomeration of the raw materials, and thenremoving the organic solvent using distillation at a high temperature ofabout 100° C. or more, thereby ultimately obtaining a granular powder(molding powder) of a press polymer-bonded explosive.

However, the WS process is disadvantageous in that a distillationprocess at a high temperature of 100° C. or more is inevitable forremoving the organic solvent after coating and agglomeration of the rawmaterials. Moreover, there is a danger in terms of handling safety ofthe organic solvent, as well as the problem of environmental harm.

The above-mentioned background arts are intended to aid understanding ofthe background of the invention, and may include matters other thanconventional technologies previously known to those skilled in the art.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Accordingly, the present invention has been made keeping in mind theabove problems encountered in the related art, and it is an object ofthe present invention to provide a method of manufacturing a presspolymer-bonded explosive, in which a polymer emulsion is used instead ofan organic solvent to maximize the efficiency of a process, and a presspolymer-bonded explosive manufactured using the same.

In order to accomplish the above object, the present invention providesa method of manufacturing a press polymer-bonded explosive using apolymer emulsion. The method includes a polymer-emulsion-manufacturingstep of mixing a monomer of a polymer binder and an emulsifier withprocess water and then adding an initiator to thus manufacture a polymeremulsion using a polymerization reaction (S110), a slurry-manufacturingstep of mixing a raw material including an explosive and an emulsionbreaker with fresh process water to thus manufacture a slurry (S120), anagglomerated-particle-forming step of adding the manufactured polymeremulsion to the manufactured slurry to thus form agglomerated particlesin which a surface of the raw material is coated with the polymer binder(S130), and an agglomerated-particle-obtaining step of collecting theagglomerated particles using filtration and drying the collectedagglomerated particles (S140).

Further, during the polymer-emulsion-manufacturing step (S110), themonomer forms the polymer binder of one or more among a styrenebutadiene rubber (SBR), neoprene, a nitrile butadiene rubber (NBR), anacrylic rubber, a fluorine-based rubber, and polyisobutylene using thepolymerization reaction.

Further, during the polymer-emulsion-manufacturing step (S110), theemulsifier is one or more among sodium dodecyl sulfonate (SDS), sodiumdodecyl benzene sulfonate (SDBS), sodium dioctyl sulfosuccinate, acetyldimethyl benzyl ammonium chloride, and hexadecyl trimethyl ammoniumbromide.

Further, during the polymer-emulsion-manufacturing step (S110), theemulsifier is added in an amount of 0.1 to 5 wt % based on a weight ofthe process water.

Further, during the slurry-manufacturing step (S120), the explosive isone or more among trimethylenetrinitroamine (RDX),tetramethylenetetranitroamine (HMX), and hexanitrohexaazaisowurtzitane(HNIW), and is dispersed in an amount of 5 to 30 wt % based on a weightof the process water.

Further, during the slurry-manufacturing step (S120), the emulsionbreaker is one or more among calcium chloride (calcium dichloride),sodium chloride, potassium chloride, magnesium chloride, sodium nitrate,sodium carbonate, sodium iodide, and potassium iodide as an inorganicsalt.

Further, during the slurry-manufacturing step (S120), the raw materialfurther includes one or more metals among aluminum, magnesium, andboron.

Further, the method further includes, after theagglomerated-particle-forming step (S130), a process-water-exchangingstep of collecting the agglomerated particles using filtration andadding again the collected agglomerated particles to new process water(S131), and a plasticizer addition step of adding a plasticizer, thusagglomerating the agglomerated particles and the plasticizer (S132).

Further, during the plasticizer addition step (S132), the plasticizer isone or more among dioctyl adipate (DOA), dioctyl sebacate, dioctylphthalate (DOP), and isododecyl pelargonate (IDP).

In addition, a press polymer-bonded explosive of the present inventionmanufactured using the above-described manufacturing method includes 50to 98 wt % of an explosive, 0 to 40 wt % of a metal, 0.5 to 5 wt % of apolymer binder, and 0 to 10 wt % of a plasticizer.

In the present invention, since a polymer emulsion is used instead of anorganic solvent, a distillation process at a high temperature of 100° C.or more is not required. Accordingly, the manufacturing time isshortened to thus reduce costs, thereby maximizing the efficiency of theprocess.

Further, since the process of distilling the organic solvent is notrequired, there is no need to allocate dead volume in a reactor, whichcorresponds to about 1/2 of the total volume of the reactor, to preventthe slurry from overflowing when the organic solvent is distilled.Therefore, the production amount per reactor is increased by about 200%.As a result, the production amount per unit time and per reactor isincreased by about 1000%.

Moreover, since an organic solvent is not used, safety andeco-friendliness of the process are high.

In addition, since energy metal particles (aluminum, magnesium, andboron), which have not been used as the composition of thepolymer-bonded explosive due to a hydration reaction with water at ahigh distillation temperature, are capable of being used, it is possibleto greatly improve the explosion energy of the press polymer-bondedexplosive that is ultimately manufactured.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a mimetic diagram showing a conventional method ofmanufacturing a press polymer-bonded explosive;

FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing a method of manufacturing a presspolymer-bonded explosive according to the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a mimetic diagram showing the method of manufacturing thepress polymer-bonded explosive according to the present invention;

FIGS. 4 and 5 show the SEM results of agglomerated particlesmanufactured using the conventional method of manufacturing the presspolymer-bonded explosive; and

FIGS. 6 and 7 show the SEM results of agglomerated particlesmanufactured using the method of manufacturing the press polymer-bondedexplosive according to the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE SPECIFIC EMBODIMENTS

The technical terms used in the present specification should beinterpreted in a sense generally understood by those skilled in the artto which the present invention belongs, and should not be construed inan overly broad sense or an overly narrow sense, unless definedotherwise in the present invention. In addition, the general terms usedin the present invention should be interpreted according to definitionsin a dictionary or according to the context.

Further, the singular forms used in the present specification includeplural referents unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. That is,the terms ‘constituting’, ‘comprising’, or ‘including’, as used herein,should not be construed as necessarily including the various elements orsteps described in the specification, but it is to be understood thatsome components or some steps may not be included, or that additionalcomponents or steps may be included therein.

FIG. 1 is a mimetic diagram showing a conventional method ofmanufacturing a press polymer-bonded explosive. As shown in FIG. 1, thepress polymer-bonded explosive is manufactured according to a WS(water-slurry) process using a coating solution manufactured by mixing apolymer binder and a plasticizer with an organic solvent. However, theWS process is disadvantageous in that a distillation process at a hightemperature of 100° C. or more is inevitable for removing the organicsolvent after coating and agglomeration of raw materials. Moreover,there is a danger in terms of handling safety of the organic solvent, aswell as the problem of environmental harm. Further, the use of metalparticles, which contribute to improvement of the explosion energy ofthe polymer-bonded explosive, is limited because the hydration reactionof metal is accelerated at high temperatures.

Accordingly, the present invention is directed to solve theabove-described problems, and relates to a method of manufacturing apress polymer-bonded explosive, in which a polymer emulsion is usedinstead of an organic solvent to maximize the efficiency of a process,and a press polymer-bonded explosive manufactured using the same.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing a method of manufacturing a presspolymer-bonded explosive according to the present invention, and FIG. 3is a mimetic diagram showing the method of manufacturing the presspolymer-bonded explosive according to the present invention.Hereinafter, the present invention will be described with reference toFIGS. 2 and 3.

As shown in FIG. 2, the present invention includes, in sequence, apolymer-emulsion-manufacturing step of adding a monomer of a polymerbinder and an emulsifier to process water, mixing them, and then addingan initiator to thus manufacture a polymer emulsion using apolymerization reaction (S110), a slurry-manufacturing step ofdispersing a raw material including an explosive and an emulsion breakerin fresh process water to thus manufacture a slurry (S120), anagglomerated-particle-forming step of adding the manufactured polymeremulsion to the manufactured slurry to thus form agglomerated particlesin which the surface of the raw material is coated with the polymerbinder (S130), and an agglomerated-particle-obtaining step of collectingthe agglomerated particles using filtration and drying the collectedagglomerated particles (S140).

In addition, the present invention further includes, after theagglomerated-particle-forming step (S130), a process-water-exchangingstep of filtering the slurry, in which the agglomerated particles areformed, to thus collect the agglomerated particles and re-dispersing thecollected agglomerated particles in new process water (S131), and aplasticizer addition step of adding a plasticizer and performing mixing(S132).

Hereinafter, each step will be described in more detail.

The polymer-emulsion-manufacturing step (S110) is a step ofmanufacturing a water-based polymer emulsion in which the polymer binderis surrounded by the emulsifier in the process water. In this step,first, the emulsifier at a critical micelle concentration (CMC) orhigher and the monomer of the polymer binder are added to the processwater, followed by mixing, thus arranging the emulsifier to form amicelle structure. The monomer of the polymer binder is present in themicelle.

Thereafter, the initiator is added to thus cause a polymerizationreaction of the monomer, and the polymer binder is formed using thepolymerization reaction. In addition, the water-based polymer emulsionin which the polymer binder is surrounded by the emulsifier in theprocess water is ultimately manufactured.

The polymer binder is applied on the surface of the explosive particleduring the agglomerated-particle-forming step (S130). As describedabove, the polymer binder is formed using the polymerization reaction ofthe monomer, and is preferably one or more among a styrene butadienerubber (SBR), neoprene, a nitrile butadiene rubber (NBR), an acrylicrubber, a fluorine-based rubber, and polyisobutylene.

Accordingly, the monomer of the polymer binder is preferably a monomerwhich is capable of forming one or more polymer binders among a styrenebutadiene rubber (SBR), neoprene, a nitrile butadiene rubber (NBR), anacrylic rubber, a fluorine-based rubber, and polyisobutylene using thepolymerization reaction. It is preferable to add the monomer of thepolymer binder in an amount of 10 to 50 wt % based on the weight of theprocess water.

In addition, the emulsifier is added in order to manufacture the polymeremulsion in which the polymer binder is surrounded by the emulsifier.Preferably, the emulsifier is one or more among an anionic emulsifier,including sodium dodecyl sulfonate (SDS), sodium dodecyl benzenesulfonate (SDBS), and sodium dioctyl sulfosuccinate, and a cationicemulsifier, including acetyl dimethyl benzyl ammonium chloride andhexadecyl trimethyl ammonium bromide.

It is preferable to add the emulsifier in an amount of 0.1 to 5 wt %based on the weight of the process water. The reason for this is basedon the following. When the amount of the emulsifier is less than 0.1 wt%, since a micelle structure is not formed, the monomer of the polymerbinder cannot be polymerized. As a result, the polymer emulsion is notmanufactured. When the amount of the emulsifier is more than 5 wt %, theemulsifier is expressed in a complicated nanostructure rather than amicelle structure, which hinders the formation of a spherical polymeremulsion.

The initiator is added to initiate the polymerization reaction of themonomer, and is preferably one or more among potassium persulfate,sodium persulfate, ammonium persulfate, and hydrogen peroxide, but isnot particularly limited thereto.

In addition to the initiator, a cross-linking agent such as divinylbenzene (DVB) or a chain transfer agent such as tetra-dodecylmercaptan(tert-dodecylmercaptan) may be added during the polymerization reaction,and the amount thereof is preferably less than 1% of the molar ratio ofthe monomer of the polymer binder.

The slurry-manufacturing step (S120) is a step of manufacturing a slurryin which an explosive is dispersed, and the raw material containing theexplosive is added to the process water and then sufficiently dispersed,thus manufacturing the slurry.

The explosive is preferably one or more among trimethylenetrinitroamine(RDX), tetramethylenetetranitroamine (HMX), andhexanitrohexaazaisowurtzitane (HNIW), and is preferably added in anamount of 5 to 30 wt % based on the weight of the process water.

The reason for this is based on the following. When the amount of theexplosive is less than 5 wt %, since the amount (yield) of theultimately obtained agglomerated particles is very small, the efficiencyof the process is reduced. When the amount of the explosive is more than30 wt %, since the concentration of the slurry is high, it is difficultto sufficiently disperse the raw material in the process water, so greatagglomeration of the explosive particles may occur.

Meanwhile, the explosive and a metal in a powder state may be furtherincluded in the raw material, and the metal is preferably one or moreamong aluminum, magnesium, and boron, which are energy metals capable ofimproving the explosion performance of the press polymer-bondedexplosive that is ultimately manufactured.

In addition, the slurry is manufactured by mixing a raw material (anexplosive or an explosive and a metal) and an emulsion breaker (or ademulsifier), and the emulsion breaker serves to precipitate the polymerbinder emulsified by the emulsifier in the polymer emulsion that isadded during the agglomerated-particle-forming step (S130).

The emulsion breaker is preferably one or more among calcium chloride(calcium dichloride, CaCl₂), sodium chloride (NaCl), potassium chloride(KCl), magnesium chloride (MgCl₂), sodium nitrate (NaNO₃), sodiumcarbonate (NaCO₃), sodium iodide (NaI), and potassium iodide (KI) as aninorganic salt.

In addition, preferably, the emulsion breaker is sufficiently added insuch an amount as to be able to precipitate the entire amount of thepolymer binder emulsified in the polymer emulsion added during theagglomerated-particle-forming step (S130). More specifically, theemulsion breaker may be added in an amount equal to or greater than theweight of the polymer binder contained in the polymer emulsion.

The reason for this is that, when the polymer binder that is not beprecipitated is present in a large amount, a raw material (an explosiveor an explosive and a metal) that is not coated with the polymer bindermay be present. In addition, the emulsion breaker has no effect on themanufacturing process because it is removed during theprocess-water-exchanging step (S131), even when a large amount of theemulsion breaker has been added.

Meanwhile, during the slurry-manufacturing step (S120), a dispersantsuch as IPA (isopropyl alcohol) may be added, or a dispersing devicesuch as a sonicator may be used for a predetermined time, so that a rawmaterial (an explosive or an explosive and a metal) is sufficientlydispersed in the process water.

Further, in consideration of the characteristics of the metal, whichaccelerates a hydration reaction with a heat-sensitive explosive at hightemperatures, the slurry-manufacturing step (S120) is preferablyperformed at room temperature. More specifically, theslurry-manufacturing step (S120) is preferably performed at atemperature of 20 to 40° C.

The agglomerated-particle-forming step (S130) is a step of formingagglomerated particles in which the surface of the raw material, thatis, the explosive or the explosive and the metal, is coated with thepolymer binder and agglomerated therewith. The polymer emulsionmanufactured during the polymer-emulsion-manufacturing step (S110) isadded in a predetermined amount to the slurry manufactured during theslurry-manufacturing step (S120) and is agitated. In consideration ofthe characteristics of the metal, which accelerates a hydration reactionwith a heat-sensitive explosive at high temperatures, theagglomerated-particle-forming step is preferably performed at roomtemperature. More specifically, the agglomerated-particle-forming stepis preferably performed at a temperature of 20 to 40° C.

When the polymer emulsion containing the polymer binder emulsified bythe emulsifier is added to the slurry containing the raw material (theexplosive or the explosive and the metal) and the emulsion breaker, thepolymer binder emulsified by the emulsifier is precipitated due to theemulsion breaker, and the precipitated polymer binder is applied on thesurface of the explosive or the explosive and the metal and agglomeratedtherewith, thus forming the agglomerated particles.

The weight of the polymer emulsion added to the slurry is preferablyadjusted depending on the chemical composition of the agglomeratedparticles ultimately obtained during the subsequentagglomerated-particle-obtaining step (S140). More specifically, it ispreferable to determine the addition amount depending on the weightpercentage of the polymer binder, which is to be included, based on thetotal weight of the agglomerated particles that are ultimately obtained.

In this connection, in the present invention, the agglomerated particlesmanufactured using the manufacturing method of the present inventionpreferably include 50 to 98 wt % of the explosive, 0 to 40 wt % of themetal, and 0.5 to 5 wt % of the polymer binder based on the total weightof agglomerated particles. The reason for this is based on thefollowing. When the amount of the polymer binder is less than 0.5 wt %,since explosive particles that are not coated with the polymer binderand not agglomerated are present in a large amount, they may besusceptible to unexpected external stimuli such as heat and impact. Whenthe amount of the polymer binder is more than 5 wt %, the physicalproperties of the polymer-bonded explosive may be reduced.

Therefore, the weight of the polymer emulsion added to the slurry duringthe agglomerated-particle-forming step (S130) is calculated so that theagglomerated particles ultimately obtained include 0.5 to 5 wt % of thepolymer binder based on the total weight of agglomerated particles, inconsideration of the weights of the explosive and the metal used duringthe manufacture of the slurry (S120) and the weight of the polymerbinder precipitated by the emulsion breaker, and the polymer emulsion isthen added.

Meanwhile, during the agglomerated-particle-forming step (S130), theslurry may be aged for a predetermined time after the agglomeratedparticles are formed, thus adjusting the size and the shape of theagglomerated particles. During the aging process, the agglomeratedparticles are coated with the polymer binder and are agglomerated togradually grow. The aging time may be about 10 minutes or more, but isnot limited thereto, and may be adjusted depending on the desired sizeand shape of the agglomerated particles.

Meanwhile, after the agglomerated-particle-forming step (S130), aprocess-water-exchanging step (S131) is performed, in which the slurryhaving the agglomerated particles formed therein is filtered using afiltration apparatus to thus collect the agglomerated particles and thecollected agglomerated particles are added again to new process water.

Thereby, residues such as inorganic salts formed by the emulsifier andthe emulsion breaker remaining in the slurry may be removed, so that theagglomerated particles ultimately obtained during theagglomerated-particle-obtaining step (S140) can be free from impurities.

Meanwhile, after the process-water-exchanging step (S131), a plasticizeraddition step (S132) is performed, in which a plasticizer is added tothe process water containing the agglomerated particles added againthereto and is then mixed so that the plasticizer is agglomerated withthe agglomerated particles. The plasticizer is preferably one or moreamong dioctyl adipate (DOA), dioctyl sebacate, dioctyl phthalate (DOP),and isododecyl pelargonate (IDP).

The weight of the added plasticizer is preferably adjusted depending onthe chemical composition of the agglomerated particles ultimatelyobtained during the subsequent agglomerated-particle-obtaining step(S140). More specifically, it is preferable to determine the additionamount depending on the weight percentage of the plasticizer, which isto be included, based on the total weight of the agglomerated particlesthat is ultimately obtained.

In this connection, in the present invention, the agglomerated particlesmanufactured using the manufacturing method of the present inventionpreferably include 50 to 98 wt % of the explosive, 0 to 40 wt % of themetal, 0.5 to 5 wt % of the polymer binder, and 0 to 10 wt % of theplasticizer based on the total weight of agglomerated particles. Thereason for this is that when the amount of the plasticizer is more than10 wt %, the physical properties of the polymer-bonded explosive may bedeteriorated.

Therefore, the weight of the plasticizer added during the plasticizeraddition step (S132) is calculated so that the agglomerated particlesultimately obtained include 0 to 10 wt % of the plasticizer based on thetotal weight of agglomerated particles, in consideration of the weightsof the explosive and the metal used during the manufacture of the slurry(S120), and the plasticizer is then added.

Meanwhile, after the plasticizer addition step (S132), filtration isperformed using a filtration apparatus to thus collect the agglomeratedparticles, and the collected agglomerated particles are placed in anoven capable of circulating air and are dried so as to have a watercontent of about 0.5% or less, thereby obtaining final agglomeratedparticles (S140).

The agglomerated particles that are ultimately obtained include 50 to 98wt % of the explosive, 0 to 40 wt % of the metal, 0.5 to 5 wt % of thepolymer binder, and 0 to 10 wt % of the plasticizer based on the totalweight of agglomerated particles. The agglomerated particles arecompression molded, thus manufacturing a press polymer-bonded explosive.In addition, the press polymer-bonded explosive manufactured accordingto the present invention has the same chemical composition as thechemical composition of the agglomerated particles.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in more detail withreference to a Comparative Example and an Example. However, thefollowing Comparative Example and Example are for illustrative purposesonly and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention.

COMPARATIVE EXAMPLE

26 g of an acrylic rubber (HYTEMP), which was a commercial polymerbinder, and 78 g of dioctyl adipate (DOA), which was a plasticizer, wereadded to 520 g of ethyl acetate, which was an organic solvent, and weresufficiently dissolved at a temperature of 60° C. for about 2 to 8hours, thus manufacturing a coating solution. Thereafter, 1196 g of RDX(Hanwha Co., Ltd.) was added to 6500 g of a process water in a 25-literreactor, and was agitated and dispersed at a temperature of 60° C. for10 minutes, thus manufacturing a slurry. Thereafter, the manufacturedcoating solution was added to the manufactured slurry to thus formagglomerated particles. Then, aging was performed for about 10 minutes,enabling the agglomerated particles to grow. Thereafter, 3120 g of theprocess water was added, thus terminating the growth of the agglomeratedparticles. After heating to about 100° C., the temperature wasmaintained for about 30 to 50 minutes, thus removing the organic solventby distillation. Thereafter, 1300 g of agglomerated particles wasultimately obtained using filtration and drying processes.

EXAMPLE

1.24 g (0.0043 mol) of sodium dodecyl sulfonate, which was anemulsifier, 156 g (1.217 mol) of butyl acrylate, which was a monomer ofa polymer binder, and 52 g (0.52 mol) of ethyl acrylate were added to800 g of a process water on the basis of a 25-liter batch, and wereagitated for 1 hour. Thereafter, 0.52 g (0.0019 mol) of potassiumpersulfate, which was an initiator, was added at a temperature of about80 to 90° C., and a polymerization reaction was then performed at atemperature of 75° C. for 5 to 10 hours, thus manufacturing a polymeremulsion (S110). Thereafter, 3600 g of RDX (Hanwha Co., Ltd.) and 80 gof calcium chloride (CaCl₂), which was an emulsion breaker, were addedto 20000 g of process water in a 25-liter reactor, and were agitated ata temperature of 25° C. for 10 minutes, thus manufacturing a slurry.Thereafter, 400 g of the manufactured polymer emulsion (the amount ofthe included polymer binder was 80 g) was added to the manufacturedslurry to thus form agglomerated particles. Then, aging was performedfor about 10 minutes, enabling the agglomerated particles to grow.Thereafter, the agglomerated particles were collected by filtration, andthe collected agglomerated particles were added again to new processwater, thus removing the residue. Thereafter, 240 g of dioctyl adipate(DOA), which was a plasticizer, was added and agitated. Thereafter, 4000g of agglomerated particles were ultimately obtained using filtrationand drying processes.

TABLE 1 Explosive (RDX) Polymer binder Plasticizer (DOA) Composition92.10 wt % 1.96 wt % 5.94 wt % (wt %)

Table 1 shows the result obtained by confirming the composition using aweight difference before and after extraction, after the agglomeratedparticles manufactured in the Example are dissolved in hexane, which isa solvent for dissolving dioctyl adipate, which is the plasticizer, andin acetone, which is a solvent for dissolving RDX, which is theexplosive, followed by extraction. The final residue after theextraction of dioctyl adipate and RDX has the composition of the polymerbinder.

TABLE 2 Sensitivity Manufacturing Impact Friction Static electricitymethod [J] [Kg · f] [J] Shock [kbar] Comparative 40.18 26.80 >25 38.16sheets Example (150.38 kbar) Example 38.73 26.92 >25 37.90 sheets(151.88 kbar)

Table 2 shows the results of the sensitivity tests of impact, friction,static electricity, and shock of the agglomerated particles manufacturedin the Comparative Example and the Example. FIGS. 4 and 5 show the SEMresults of the agglomerated particles manufactured using theconventional method of manufacturing the press polymer-bonded explosive,and FIGS. 6 and 7 show the SEM results of the agglomerated particlesmanufactured using the method of manufacturing the press polymer-bondedexplosive according to the present invention.

In the impact sensitivity test, the weight was allowed to free-fallwhile the weight and height thereof were changed to measure the energywhen an explosion reaction of a sample occurred with a probability of50%. In the friction sensitivity test, the weight of the weight providedon the equidistant groove formed in a long lever and the position of theequidistant groove were changed to measure the energy when the explosionreaction of a sample fastened to the front bottom of the long leveroccurred at a probability of 50%. In the static-electricity sensitivitytest, electrical energy was applied to measure whether or not the samplereacted. In the shock sensitivity test, an attenuator (gap) was placedbetween a shock pressure source (a donor explosive) and the sample, andthe shock pressure source was detonated to measure the thickness of theattenuator when the explosion reaction of the sample occurred with aprobability of 50%.

As seen from Table 2 and FIG. 4, the impact sensitivity, frictionsensitivity, static-electricity sensitivity, shock sensitivity and shapeof the agglomerated particles manufactured according to themanufacturing method of the present invention are almost the same asthose of the agglomerated particles manufactured according to aconventional manufacturing method using an organic solvent. This resultshows that the manufacturing method of the present invention has theexcellent efficiency of a process from the aspects of time, costs, andproduction amounts (agglomerated particles weighing about three times ormore are obtained based on the same volume of reactor (25 liters)) andthat even the agglomerated particles having the same characteristics canbe manufactured.

In the method of manufacturing the press polymer-bonded explosive usingthe polymer emulsion and the press polymer-bonded explosive manufacturedusing the same, which are the present invention, the polymer emulsion isused instead of the organic solvent, which maximizes the efficiency of aprocess from the aspects of time, costs, and production amounts.Moreover, since an organic solvent is not used, safety andeco-friendliness of the process are secured.

The embodiments of a method of manufacturing a press polymer-bondedexplosive using a polymer emulsion and a press polymer-bonded explosivemanufactured using the same, which are the present invention, are onlypreferable embodiments provided so that the present invention can beeasily carried out by those skilled in the art to which the presentinvention belongs, but are not limited to the disclosed Examples and theaccompanying drawings, and thus the scope of the present invention isnot limited thereto. Accordingly, the true scope of the presentinvention should be determined by the technical idea of the appendedclaims. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that varioussubstitutions, modifications, and variations are possible withoutdeparting from the technical idea of the present invention, and it isobvious that those parts easily changeable by those skilled in the artare included in the scope of the present invention.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of manufacturing a press polymer-bondedexplosive using a polymer emulsion, the method comprising: apolymer-emulsion-manufacturing step of mixing a monomer of a polymerbinder and an emulsifier with a process water and then adding aninitiator to thus manufacture a polymer emulsion using a polymerizationreaction; a slurry-manufacturing step of mixing a raw material includingan explosive and an emulsion breaker with fresh process water to thusmanufacture a slurry; an agglomerated-particle-forming step of addingthe manufactured polymer emulsion to the manufactured slurry to thusform agglomerated particles in which a surface of the raw material iscoated with the polymer binder; and an agglomerated-particle-obtainingstep of collecting the agglomerated particles using filtration anddrying the collected agglomerated particles.
 2. The method of claim 1,wherein, during the polymer-emulsion-manufacturing step, the monomerforms the polymer binder of one or more among a styrene butadiene rubber(SBR), neoprene, a nitrile butadiene rubber (NBR), an acrylic rubber, afluorine-based rubber, and polyisobutylene using the polymerizationreaction.
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein during thepolymer-emulsion-manufacturing step, the emulsifier is one or more amongsodium dodecyl sulfonate (SDS), sodium dodecyl benzene sulfonate (SDBS),sodium dioctyl sulfosuccinate, acetyl dimethyl benzyl ammonium chloride,and hexadecyl trimethyl ammonium bromide.
 4. The method of claim 1,wherein during the polymer-emulsion-manufacturing step, the emulsifieris added in an amount of 0.1 to 5 wt % based on a weight of the processwater.
 5. The method of claim 1, wherein during the slurry-manufacturingstep, the explosive is one or more among trimethylenetrinitroamine(RDX), tetramethylenetetranitroamine (HMX), andhexanitrohexaazaisowurtzitane (HNIW), and is dispersed in an amount of 5to 30 wt % based on a weight of the process water.
 6. The method ofclaim 1, wherein during the slurry-manufacturing step, the emulsionbreaker is one or more among calcium chloride (calcium dichloride),sodium chloride, potassium chloride, magnesium chloride, sodium nitrate,sodium carbonate, sodium iodide, and potassium iodide as an inorganicsalt.
 7. The method of claim 1, wherein during the slurry-manufacturingstep, the raw material further includes one or more metals amongaluminum, magnesium, and boron.
 8. The method of claim 1, furthercomprising: after the agglomerated-particle-forming step, aprocess-water-exchanging step of collecting the agglomerated particlesusing filtration and adding again the collected agglomerated particlesto a new process water; and a plasticizer addition step of adding aplasticizer, thus agglomerating the agglomerated particles and theplasticizer.
 9. The method of claim 8, wherein the plasticizer is one ormore among dioctyl adipate (DOA), dioctyl sebacate, dioctyl phthalate(DOP), and isododecyl pelargonate (IDP).
 10. A press polymer-bondedexplosive comprising: 50 to 98 wt % of an explosive; 0 to 40 wt % of ametal; 0.5 to 5 wt % of a polymer binder; and 0 to 10 wt % of aplasticizer.
 11. The press polymer-bonded explosive of claim 10, whereinthe explosive is one or more among trimethylenetrinitroamine (RDX),tetramethylenetetranitroamine (HMX), and hexanitrohexaazaisowurtzitane(HNIW).
 12. The press polymer-bonded explosive of claim 10, wherein themetal is one or more among aluminum, magnesium, and boron.
 13. The presspolymer-bonded explosive of claim 10, wherein the polymer binder is oneor more among a styrene butadiene rubber (SBR), neoprene, a nitrilebutadiene rubber (NBR), an acrylic rubber, a fluorine-based rubber, andpolyisobutylene.
 14. The press polymer-bonded explosive of claim 10,wherein the plasticizer is one or more among dioctyl adipate (DOA),dioctyl sebacate, dioctyl phthalate (DOP), and isododecyl pelargonate(IDP).